Are you driving an unsafe vehicle? Have you taken your automobile to the dealership to have it fixed on more than one occasion only for the dangerous problem to persist? Or, were you driving an unsafe vehicle, only for it to cause an accident?
Each year, manufacturers produce cars, trucks, SUVs and minivans that have defects, some of which place drivers and passengers in serious danger. If you have purchased or leased an unsafe vehicle, your first step is to report the problem to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
If the NHTSA receives similar complaints from a number of drivers about the same automobile, it could mean that there is a safety-related defect that could warrant a full-blown investigation by the NHTSA. To report your problem to the NHTSA, click here.
About Safety Recalls
According to the NHTSA, “A recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle, equipment, car seat, or tire creates an unreasonable safety risk or fails to meet minimum safety standards.” However, most of the time manufacturers voluntarily conduct their own safety recall before the NHTSA becomes involved.
“Manufacturers are required to fix the problem by repairing it, replacing it, offering a refund, or in rare cases repurchasing a vehicle,” says the NHTSA.To find out if your vehicle is subject to a safety recall, use the NHTSA’s VIN lookup tool by clicking here.
How safe is your vehicle anyway? If you’re not sure, we recommend checking out clark.com’s article entitled, “These are the 21 deadliest cars in America,” which found the following vehicles to be some of the most dangerous: the Hyundai Accent, the Kia Rio, the Scion tC, the Chevrolet Spark, the Nissan Versa, the Ford Fiesta sedan, the Kia Soul, and the Dodge Challenger.
If you have been injured because of a dangerous and defective vehicle, contact our office to speak with a Columbia, SC personal injury attorney.